Oasis 25% better than Navigator?

[hince57]

Hello all,

 

We are considering Oasis or Navigator for this summer.

 

I've never been on Oasis class but been on Freedom class and the refurbished Navigator.

 

From a price and experience perspective, can anyone who has been in a similar situation tell me if the Oasis is worth the additional cost (in this case 25%)? Cruising with family; 3 kids, ages 3 - 11.

 

The actual departure ports are inconsequential at this point.

 

Thanks

[COCKYMARK]

Yes!...it is an unbelievable ship! your kids will love it! so many fun things to do and see you cant do it all! Oasis is in a class by itself.

[Cindy]

I would pay a little more for Oasis just because it's a unique experience, but I think 25% is high. This will probably be an expensive summer to try Oasis since Allure is going to be in Europe and availability is limited. You might find better fares if you wait a year until there's more than one Oasis class ship sailing from a US port.

[dreamer976]

I do love Voyager and Freedom class ships as well.

 

I don't really think that because of the % of price increase for a sailing on Oasis/Allure, that it's a (in this case) 25% better experience; however, having sailed Oasis I can say that it is a totally different experience from even Freedom Class. It's definitely not for everyone (make sure you bring your most comfortable walking shoes/sandals!!) but for many, including myself it genuinely was a WOW! experience.

 

As far as pricing goes, you can see, in the entertainment value alone, the increased production costs involved. I would never tell anyone that they HAD to sail one of these 2 (soon to be 3) amazing ships, but I wouldn't hesitate to recommend sailing one of these beauties if asked.

[Clarea]

I don't think it's an apples to apples comparison, because Navigator is sailing from Galveston. My experience has been that the prices of Galveston cruises have been lower than similar cruises out of Florida. In other words, some of the 25% difference is due to the port.

[Cel_cruise]

I have not been on Oasis but I have been on NAV. I think Oasis would be amazing. I also think that departing from galveston is awful - I wish I knew before I booked how much it would cost for is to get from the airport to the boat and back. Would you believe it was cheaper to rent a car for the week and leave it parked at the dock than it was to do anything else? So, 50$ for parking plus 50$ a day for the car that no one was using...

 

We did spend 3 great days checking out galveston/Houston before the cruise and everyone should do that once...

 

Anyway - I know you said departure ports were inconsequential but I thought that too when I was deciding about my February trip and boy was I wrong! So just wanted to make sure you were truly comparing all costs...

[hince57]

thanks for the help thus far...

 

luckily, don't mind walking and sailing from galveston is a breeze due to driving.

 

i know it can't ever be exactly apples to apples, but will try and get close :)

[Orange jeep]

I have been on the Oasis twice. One reason I went back was because of the many entertainment venus. I really like that class of ship. Honestly you and kids will have a blast no mater what.

 

:)

[paigebeverly]

Me and my husband just did the navigator and really enjoyed ourselves. In saying that we decided that our 13 year old daughter might not so our next cruise will be on the Allure next June.

[mil76]

Well, we just went through your exact scenario, and had a bit of buyers remorse for choosing Navigator. We have sailed Oasis and Allure twice each, and Navigator three times, twice out of Galveston since the refurbishment.

 

We have been doing Oasis or Allure for our Fall breaks for a couple of years now, and they are just in another stratusphere as far as cruises go for us, especially when you take the kids into account. Navigator on the other hand has been more of a semi-last-minute spring break idea the past two years, since we could get on board for about 25% less all-in than Oasis/Allure out of FL. As we got off the Navigator two Sundays ago we decided that going forward it's worth the extra 25% to go on Oasis/Allure. Our kids will choose Oasis/Allure every time, but even my wife this time said she would rather do Oasis/Allure.

 

Granted, one of our biggest complaints about Navigator/Galveston is disembarking/transportation since we fly in, which won't be as much of an issue for you since you can drive, so that may even things out for you. But even without those issues, if you are traveling with a family Oasis/Allure has it all over Navigator.

[luvjftffc]

If you look on the port boards you can find cheap shuttles and taxi's from airport to the port. I am sailing on Navigator in September for the second time and been on Oasis in December and it was a great ship and my daughter loved it. We didn't do half the activities because there was just not enough time to do everything. If I sail again on Oasis I will make sure that the ports of call I'm not interested in and just stay on the ship.

[hince57]

i think this was hijacked a bit, but no worries...:)

 

to make this a little more apples to apples, let me instead ask if oasis is 25% better than independence?

 

that takes the port difference out of the discussion...again, been on multiple voyager and freedom class, just no oasis class.

 

thanks

[xpcdoojk]

i think this was hijacked a bit, but no worries...:)

 

to make this a little more apples to apples, let me instead ask if oasis is 25% better than independence?

 

that takes the port difference out of the discussion...again, been on multiple voyager and freedom class, just no oasis class.

 

thanks

 

I think the Oasis for families or active people is worth more. From an entertainment point of view it is worth a lot more.

 

25%, that really is up to the individual. I have booked both ships and Freedom Class. I prefer Oasis, but that is just me.

 

My problem is that I like to travel to new places, and limiting yourself to the Oasis ships means that they are not a good option.

 

jc

[wolfganghowell]

It's not just the 25% price difference. From Arlington, you have considerable savings being able to drive and choosing whether or not to do a pre cruise hotel. For Oasis, you're talking 5 plane tickets. I can't really tell you much about the Oasis experience but if you are happy with Navigator or Liberty out of Galveston and price is the big issue, I'd do a big list with everyone on what the differences are worth. I know from doing my research that Oasis will be a HUGELY different cruise experience for us. We got a great deal so it was worth it to try one time. I don't anticipate it being a regular cruise option for us but who knows. Galveston cruises are a great bang for their buck and not having to hassle with flying is worth a lot to me.

[jticarruthers]

Personally didn't get much of a WOW from Allure. Cruise was good and I would do an Oasis class again but would not pay a premium to do so.

[rbschultz]

I've done a lot of the Voyager class ships, all the Freedom class ships, and Oasis twice. I absolutely LOVE Oasis and will be on Allure in December. The kids will love the boardwalk with the carousel, face painting, etc. I definitely believe that it is worth it.

[dnewscruiser]

We've done two cruises on Freedom, two on Oasis; about to do our third on Oasis. For us, we've decided that yes, Oasis class is worth a price difference. Honestly, I don't think we could go back to Freedom class unless it was for itinerary (Europe).

 

We are in our early 30s, and have not traveled with kids (other than being pregnant!), but we like a lot of activity on board and a lot of options for eating. I love the Solarium and Solarium Bistro and Park Cafe for lunches; hubs hangs out almost all day on the Sports Deck, mainly the Flowriders. He loves Oasis because the two Flowriders doubles his opportunities to go! We love love love Central Park to--we eat almost all breakfasts at the Park Cafe and a lot of lunches/snacks. We never go to the Windjammer on Oasis--food is so much better so many other places.

 

Plus, IMO, entertainment on Oasis is far superior than on Freedom, with the Broadway show and the Aqua Theater. I would think your kids would love the shows there. After activities, food options, and entertainment, the two ship classes do have a lot of similarities. But if itinerary is not important to you and the ship is, we'd choose Oasis every time. Just so much more to do and see on the ship!

 

 

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[dnewscruiser]

I should add, since we've only cruised in the Caribbean, the ship is our destination, not the ports. In fact, we don't even get off at some ports any more. Oasis is a destination unto itself.

 

 

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